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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: field · hide · swing · rush · wind · last · pass · band

  1. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  2. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. That must've been a ________________.
  23. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. band — a ring
  2. band — a rubber band
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. field — farmland
  6. swing — to play on
  7. rush — hurry
  8. swing — in golf
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. pass — a permit
  12. wind — moving air
  13. last — to go on
  14. wind — moving air
  15. last — finally
  16. field — a subject
  17. last — final
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. swing — music
  21. band — a music group
  22. rush — a thrill
  23. hide — animal skin
  24. field — for sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com